Coin holder



1966 s. N. SPARR 3,277,904

COIN HOLDER Filed Feb. 11, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR STANLEY N. SPARR ATTORNEY Oct. 11, 1966 s. N. SPARR 3,

COIN HOLDER Filed Feb. 11, 1965 2 SheetsSheet 2 INVENTOR STANLEY N. SPARR ATTORNEY United States Patent O "ice 3,277,904 ODIN HULDER Stanley N. Sparr, R0. Box 3100, Madison, Wis. Filed Feb. 11, 1965, Ser. No. 431909 4 (Ilaims. (Cl. 133-6) The present invention relates to coin holders, and more particularly to small containers designed to be carried on the person, in ones pocket or handbag, for holding a supply of nickels, dimes, quarters, car or bus tokens and the like.

Such devices are commonly made of hard molded plastic and comprise essentially a body having a plurality of pockets of different sizes for holding a supply of two or more kinds of coins or the equivalent, covered by a cap or lid which is movable between a pocket-covering position securely holding the coins in place and positions selectively uncovering the pockets and exposing the coins for removal. Very often the holder is made in small size and equipped with an eye adapted to receive a short loop of chain for hanging .a number of keys or some other small implement or contrivance, such for example as a miniature flashlight, a mechanical pen or pencil, a penknife or some other small device of utility and convenience.

The principal objects of the present invention are to improve certain details of construction and design of such holders so as to make them more efficient and effective in holding the coins securely and in being more readily worked or operated to open a selected pocket for quick and sure release of a desired coin.

More particularly the invention provides a stop construction for definitely fixing the cover in accurate pocketclosing or coin-holding position and securing the cover in such position against all ordinary accidental shocks and jars incident to normal use and abuse of the device and yet permitting ready and easy movement of the cover, whenever desired, to a position uncovering any selected pocket for release and removal of a coin therefrom.

A related object is to provide a coin holder of the type described with a stop construction that will definitely fix and limit the range of movement of the cover to a position uncovering any selected pocket and cooperating with the body in such position to uncover and expose the full area of the pocket so as to eliminate the necessity of taking great care to position the cover in precise and exact coin-releasing relation to the pocket, which has been a matter of considerable annoyance in the use of the best prior art coin holders of which I am aware.

Other objects are to increase the strength and sturdiness of the body and cover combination and generally to enhance the durability and efliciency of the device.

in the accompanying drawings, which illustrate certain embodiments of the invention which have been successfully reduced to practice and have been found to give entire satisfaction in actual use and which are accordingly at present preferred.

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one species of a complete coin holder constructed in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the holder of FIG. 1 show ing in full lines the cover member in closed or normal position and showing it swung to each of its two open or coin-releasing positions in broken lines;

FIG. 3 is a relatively enlarged scale detail top plan view of a portion of the top surface of the body member, with the connecting pivot and the stop lug of the cover member shown in section;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

3,277,964 Patented Get. 11, 1%66 FIG. 5 is a transverse cross sectional view taken on the line 55 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view similar to that of FIG. 2 but showing another species of the complete coin holder constructed in accordance with the invention, with the cover shown closed in full lines and open in broken lines;

FIG. 7 is a relatively enlarged scale detail top plan view of a portion of the top surface of the body member of the FIG. 6 species;

FIG. 8 is an inverted perspective view of the cover member of the FIG. 6 species;

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal cross sectional view taken on the line 9-9 of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 10 is a transverse cross sectional view taken on the line 1010 of FIG. 6.

But it is to be understood that the two species shown in these figures and hereinafter to be described in detail constitute merely exemplary and illustrative embodiments of the generic inventive concepts that will be defined in the appended claims and that these concepts are capable of being incorporated in other and further modified forms, all of which, to the extent that they embody the principles of the invention as defined by the claims, are to be deemed within the scope and purview thereof.

Referring now to the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-5 of the drawings, the reference numeral 1 designates generally the body member and 2 designates generally the cover member of the first exemplary embodiment of the invention. Both are best made of some suitable hard high impact moldable plastic, such as polystyrene, and each is a single integral or one-piece member.

The body member 1, hereinafter generally called the body, has a solid bottom 3 which has a flat under surface and provides on its top surface a pair of shallow side by side pockets 4, 5 which are defined by the bottom 3, forming the floor of the pockets, and the body front wall 6 and the cooperating wall 7 which curves continuously from the ends of the front wall around the two ends and back of the body. It is desirable to form the wall 7 with a protuberance 8 at one corner of the body, perforated with an eye 9 for reception of a chain loop for holding keys or one or another of the ancillary devices heretofore suggested.

The front and back portions of the surrounding walls are enlarged inwardly at about the center of the body interior to provide the projections shown at 8 and 9. Both of these have intersecting arcuate sides of a curvature that conforms to the curvature of the interior surfaces of the wall 7 at the ends of the body, so that these curves define two circular pockets or shallow wells, each of a size to accommodate a low stack of coins of a different denomination, e.g., nickels in one pocket and dimes in the other.

To facilitate faster molding and to control shrinkage, relief holes 10 may be formed in the relatively thick projections 8 and 9.

The cover member 2, hereinafter generally called simply the cover, is substantially a plate that is generally fiat and of less thickness than the pocket depth with, however, tapered edges as seen in the figures. The overall plan shape of the cover is such that it has back and end edges conforming substantially to the back and end edges of the body. That is to say, those edges of the cover, designated 11, extend in a continuous curve in close register with the corresponding edges of the body end and back wall 7 when the cover is centrally positioned on top of the body as seen in FIG. 1 and in the full lines of FIG. 2. The front of the cover, however, is deeply indented, being in fact centrally entirely removed so as not to overlie any of the front wall 6 of the body when the cover is in its central position. The front of the cover is here cut back to an inner edge 12 overlying the rear projection 9 of the body, and this inner edge 12 curves forwardly at its ends to intersect the outer edge 11 over the end zones of the body and form with that outer edge 11 a pair of lobes 13. The shape and proportions of these lobes are such that When the cover is positioned centrally on the body, as shown in FIG. 1 and in the full lines of FIG. 2, each of the lobes will overlie the outer portion only of one of the pockets 4, and will leave the inner portion of the pocket uncovered and exposed, as is clearly shown in FIG. 2.

The cover is pivotally mounted on the body by a pivot pin 14 which stands in registering holes formed in the cover and body in the rear central part of the two. The pin is best made in the form of a hollow rivet, countersunk up in the bottom of the body and headed at both ends as shown to perform the double function of uniting the body and cover members and pivotally connecting them.

It will be recognized that this pivotal mounting permits the cover, when in its normal, central coin-holding position shown in full lines in FIG. 2, in which each lobe 13 covers enough of its subjacent pocket 4 or 5 to retain any coins that may be in such pocket, to be swung laterally to one side or the other, as indicated by the broken lines in the figure, so that one of the lobes will quite completely uncover the whole area of its pocket while the other lobe remains in a substantially covering position on its pocket.

It is primarily to fix and determine the limits of the three possible positions of the cover that the present improvements have been made, and these will now be described.

To fix the cover securely yet yieldably in its normal or coin-holding position, the top surface of the front wall 6 of the body is formed with an elevated ridge which is higher than the level of the top surface of the end and back walls 7 and spans the entire distance between the intersections of the cover edges 11 and 12, Le, the entire distance between the end points of the two lobes 13 of the cover.

The effect is to poistion the cover with the two lobe end points seated against the ends of the ridge 15. However, with the device held in the palm of one hand, a moderate sidewise pressure of the thumb on the inner edge 12 of one or the other of the lobes 13 will cause the point of the other lobe to ride up on the ridge, the material of the cover flexing and yielding sufficiently for this purpose, so that the under surface of the lobe will then slide frictionally over the ridge as the cover moves to pocket-uncovering position. Reverse movement of the cover is readily effected, with the lobe sliding frictionally over the ridge until the lobe point reaches the end of the ridge, when the lobe snaps down to the full line position of the parts in FIG. 2, with each lobe point positioned off the ridge but close to an end of the ridge.

As shown, each of the lobe ends may be tapered to a downwardly sloping terminal which can be scored or corrugated to facilitate pushing contact by the thumb. And the ends of the ridge 15 are best rounded slightly, as shown, so as to facilitate camming the advancing lobe up onto the ridge.

To limit the opening movement of the cover to pocketuncovering and coin-releasing position the cover and body members are provided with cooperating lug and slot means that will now be described.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-5, the under surface of the central rear portion of the cover member is provided with a short stout depending lug 16 immediately in front of the pivot pin-receiving hole. The upper surface of the body member is formed with an arcuate slot 17 in the enlargement or projection 9. This slot receives the lug, and its arcuate curvature and length are such that the lug rides in the slot throughout the whole permissible swing of the cover from its normal,

coin-holding position, in which the lug is in the center of the slot, to either extreme position in which the cover has moved to uncover one of the pockets and the lug is at one end or the other of the slot. The length of the slot is such that its ends abut the lug and stop its further movement, and hence further movement of the cover, when the cover is set in precisely accurate pocket-uncovering position.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 6l0, the general construction of the body and the cover is substantially the same as in the first described species.

Thus, the body 20 is shaped to provide pockets 21 and 22 by means of the cooperating curvatures of the body side and end Wall and front wall, and the cover 23 is pivoted to the body at 29 and is formed with lobes 24 having front points that abut and override the front ridge 25 of the body, all as in the first species of the invention.

However, in this second species the stop elements for fixing the opening positions of the cover member are relatively reversed. That is to say, here the projection 26 formed in the rear of the body to define the two pockets has a lug 27 upstanding from it, and the underside of the cover member 23 has the slot means 28 formed in it. The slot means 28 is in two parts, each part being one end portion of a broken or interrupted arcuate slot which has its central portion removed where the slot means is intersected by the inner edge of the cover.

It will be evident that when the cover is in its normal central coin-holding position, shown in full lines in FIG. 6, the stud 27 stands midway between the ends of the slot means 28. When, however, the cover is swung toward one or the other of its opening, coin-releasing positions, the stud enters one or the other end of the slot means 28, and the opening movement of the cover can continue only until the end of the slot means abuts the lug and stops it. The effect is thus the same as in the previous embodiment where the arrangement of lug and slot means is relatively reversed in the cover and body.

I claim:

1. A coin holder comprising a body member having closed bottom and side walls providing a pair of side by side open topped pockets each having arcuate inner wall surfaces defining at least partially the outline of a coin to be contained in the holder and being deep enough to accommodate a plurality of such coins,

a cover member comprising a plate normally positioned centrally on the body and having an outer edge conforming substantially to a major portion of the plan outline of the body member and having a deep indentation in its front edge defining a pair of side lobes each normally covering a portion only of one of said pockets and uncovering the remainder thereof,

a pivot pin connecting the rear central portions of the members mounting the cover member on the body member to swing laterally from said normal position to a coin releasing position in which one or the other of said lobes projects over and beyond the adjacent side edge of the body member and the adjacent pocket is completely uncovered for release of a coin therefrom,

and means yieldably positioning the cover member in said normal position comprising an elevated ridge formed on the top surface of the front edge of the body member, substantially spanning the distance between the opposite inner front edges of the two lobes when the cover member is in said normal position and adapted to be surmounted and overriden by either of said lobes when the cover member is swung to coin releasing position.

2. A coin holder comprising a body member having closed bottom and side walls and a flat top surface portion indented to provide a pair of side by side open topped pockets each having arcuate inner wall surfaces defining and means yieldably positioning the cover member in said normal position comprising an elevated ridge formed on the top surface of the front edge of the body member, substantially spanning the distance at least partially the outline of a coin to be contained in the holder and being deep enough to accommodate a plurality of such coins,

a cover member comprising a plate normally positioned centrally on the body and having a flat under surface portion and an outer edge conforming substantially to a major portion of the plan outline of the body member and having a deep indentation in its front edge defining a pair of side lobes each normally between the opposite inner front edges of the two lobes when the cover member is in said normal position and adapted to be surmounted and overridden by either of said lobes when the cover member is swung to coin releasing position.

covering a portion only of one of said pockets and 10 uncovering the remainder thereof,

a pivot pin connecting the rear central portions of the members mounting the cover member on the body member to swing laterally from said normal position to a coin releasing position in which one or the other of said lobes projects over and beyond the adjacent side edge of the body member and the adjacent pocket is completely uncovered for release of a coin therefrom,

means limiting movement of the cover member to each of said coin releasing positions comprising a stud 3. The coin holder claimed in claim 2, in which the stud depends from the flat under surface portion of the cover member and the slot means is formed on an arc in the flat top surface portion of the body member.

4. The coin holder claimed in claim 2, in which the stud is upstanding from the flat top surface portion of the body member and the slot means is formed on an arc in the flat under surface portion of the cover member.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 225 143 3/1880 Kahler.

ne of pro ecting from said flat surface port1on of o 1,896,976 2/1933 schlfiendecker 220 33 said members and slot means formed on an arc in 2,436,075 2/1948 Orban 221116 said flat surface portion of the other member and d b t t d 2,534,815 12/1950 Flelds 22033 terminating in en a uments, sai s u n ing in 2,539,648 1/1951 Wmk said slot means and being engageable with one or the other of said abutments when the cover member is swung laterally to one or the other of said coin releasing positions, thereby preventing further swinging movement of the cover member,

ROBERT B. REEVES, Primary Examiner.

THERON E. CONDON, Examiner. J. M. CASKIE, S. H. TOLLBERG, Assistant Examiners. 

1. A COIN HOLDER COMPRISING A BODY MEMBER HAVING CLOSED BOTTOM AND SIDE WALLS PROVIDING A PAIR OF SIDE BY SIDE OPEN TOPPED POCKETS EACH HAVING ARCUATE INNER WALL SURFACES DEFINING AT LEAST PARTIALLY THE OUTLINE OF A COIN TO BE CONTAINED IN THE HOLDER AND BEING DEEP ENOUGH TO ACCOMMODATE A PLURALITY OF SUCH COINS, A COVER MEMBER COMPRISING A PLATE NORMALLY POSITIONED CENTRALLY ON THE BODY AND HAVING AN OUTER EDGE CONFORMING SUBSTANTIALLY TO A MAJOR PORTION OF THE PLAN OUTLINE OF THE BODY MEMBER AND HAVING A DEEP INDENTATION IN ITS FRONT EDGE DEFINING A PAIR OF SIDE LOBES EACH NORMALLY COVERING A PORTION ONLY OF ONE OF SAID POCKETS AND UNCOVERING THE REMAINDER THEREOF, A PIVOT PIN CONNECTING THE REAR CENTRAL PORTIONS OF THE MEMBERS MOUNTING THE COVER MEMBER ON THE BODY MEMBER TO SWING LATERALLY FROM SAID NORMAL POSITION TO A COIN RELEASING POSITION IN WHICH ONE OR THE OTHER OF SAID LOBES PROJECTS OVER AND BEYOND THE ADJACENT SIDE EDGE OF THE BODY MEMBER AND THE ADJACENT POCKET IS COMPLETELY UNCOVERED FOR RELEASE OF A COIN THEREFROM, 